I just bought a "new" 2001 and it seems like it takes the truck maybe 20 to 30 minutes to get to 165 or 170 (idling) and both upper and lower radiator hoses are rock hard. Is this normal? I'm trying to troubleshoot a heater issue and wasn't sure if the truck was getting warm enough. Both hoses in and out of heater core seem hot but the radiator hoses don't seem to get too hot. Is this normal? Also, Ive tested the cold/warm blend actuator and it seems to be working. Read something about maybe if it has an aftermarket Tstat it may not be directing enough fluid to the heater core, but those lines seem very hot. Any ideas?

Also, the oil pressure seems to be on the high side when driving in the city (not sure about highway). It hovers right in the middle unless Im accelerating and then it moves close to the upper line.
One more thing unrelated. There is a filter of some sort that screws into the front engine cover (where all the pullys are) and it has a hose and a small canister attached to it. Is it possible that this could be the source of an oil leak??

Thanks for any help!
Tom

 

If you're just idling, it will take a while to get up to full operating temp., especially in colder weather. The upper hose won't get warm till the thermostat opens up, which should be at 190 with a stock thermostat. The lower hose probably won't get much warmer either until the thermostat opens and warm water starts circulating. The heater is feed from a port further back on the block, so it's not really dependent on the thermostat. You can check if those hoses are warming up as the engine temp comes up to prove you're getting flow in and out of the core.

On the oil pressure, the newer 2nd gen trucks don't show the actual pressure on the gauge. They just estimate pressure based on engine criteria. The sensor just checks that there is pressure, and if there isn't then it bottoms out the gauge.

The piece on the front of the engine cover is the breather and the canister is the catch bottle to contain drips from the breather. Since the canister is vented, the fan will push oil vapors all over the front of the engine and back of the radiator making a mess and making it look like a leak. Most people have either extended the hose down below the block or back to the frame rail behind the engine. You can search here for "breather bottle relocation".

 

Man, really appreciate the detailed info!! I was worried about the oil pressure because I thought maybe the CCV was clogged (since there was so much oil everywhere), causing a rise in pressure. And I didnt want to blow any other seals. The pressure gauge just sits at 1/2 then when I hit the pedal, it go up to the upper line until I let off.

Yeah, both of the heater core hoses are hot and the flap seems to be working, so Im not sure why the heater isnt getting hot.

I don't know if I mentioned it, and you can probably tell, but this is my first diesel so I'm trying to get familiar with the ins and out. Im taking it in to have it gone over in the next week or so, but I didnt want to do any damage in the mean time.

Tom

 

I think I'm going to start with buying a 10ft piece of 1/2 inch reinforced rubber fuel line and run it from the CCV filter to a sideways water bottle with a few vent holes cut in the top and attach that with zip ties to the cross bar. Gotta be cleaner and better than that dang messy canister it has now.

 

Interesting. If both hoses are hot, I would assume you're getting flow through the core. Only other way to verify would be to pull the outlet side and make sure fluid is flowing out.

I took a piece of hose and ran up and over the APPS bracket, then down toward the frame rail under the driver side at the cross-member. I moved the stock bottle back to that location. This way I can empty/clean the bottle at oil changes and it doesn't blow everywhere. Wherever you move it to, just make sure your hose doesn't have any dips where the fluid can collect and block off the airflow.